1. Field of the Invention
Disclosed is a computer directed system for optimizing direct mailing costs, minimizing the amount of delay in grouping, according to a postal agency's rules, mailable items for mailing, and tracking mailed items.
2. Description of the Background Art
For individuals and businesses processing a considerable quantity of mail, postal agencies, like the United States Postal Service (USPS), often have available various discount direct mailing rates. Taking advantage of these lower rates is often the difference between a profitable and nonprofitable enterprise. However, to benefit from these discount mailing rates several stiff hurdles exist. Hopefully, to maximize the efficiency of an operation and to lower costs, the postal agency attaches rigorous rules and regulations that, until the creation of subject system, have required a substantial loss of time in sending the mail out the door of the business and into the hands of the postal agency. Postal discount rate qualification rules present a gradient in benefits. For example, the USPS has "traying rules" which set the requirements for the type of mail that is placed in a standard mailing tray. Such considerations as grouping zip codes within a tray, sequencing zip codes, listing carrier routes, filling a mailing tray to its total thickness or height and weight limits, and the like all serve to build additional postal discounts. The subject computer directed system serves to maximize the postal discount by overseeing the mailing process within the framework of the postal rules.
By way of example concerning the prior state of the art for mailing items within a mailing tray, each individual mailing tray needed to be arranged by hand to take full advantage of the postal discounts. Also, time was being wasted while the necessary mailing pieces were being fitted into the various mailing trays to achieve mailing tray total thickness or height and weight mailing rules benefits.
Further, for the first time the subject system provides a means for tracking a mailed item through its course from being mailed to delivery to a consumer. With the subject system a label and record are generated indicating exactly which customer mailing pieces are within which mailing tray when they leave the processing facility. Should a customer claim they have not received their mailing piece, that piece and the other mailing pieces within the same mailing tray proximate the lost mailing piece can be followed to see if the tray proceeded along the expected path and that the other customers within that tray received their mailing pieces.